


The Beginning of beginnings

by memorywolf



Series: I Belong To You [2]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, M/M, Peter is 18+ here, Sugar Baby Peter Parker, Sugar Daddy, mob boss tony
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-24
Updated: 2019-02-24
Packaged: 2019-11-04 20:09:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,816
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17904827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/memorywolf/pseuds/memorywolf
Summary: Peter Parker only has himself to rely on, he's lost his parents, lost his aunt and uncle, lost his scholarship. The only thing he hasn't lost is himself, but he's starting to think he's losing that too. A chance meeting in a dark room, self-pitying speech, and Tony Stark's generosity towards developing young minds provides Peter the escape he needs to turn his life around. Peter's not dumb enough to turn it down and this sets off the beginning of the rest of his life.(the requested prequel to Show the World Who You Belong To)





	The Beginning of beginnings

**Author's Note:**

> Look how productive i can be when i'm supposed to be doing assignments and studying for quizzes due next week. Here we are with how Peter and Tony met, I thought I was going to make it a one shot and put it as a second chapter to STWWYBT but i realised i wrote it in a way that I can flesh it out quite some bit so here we are. Not beta'd but you're welcome to point out any mistakes!

Walking around the Stark Expo Peter was both delighted and depressed. Delighted because of the amount of science! and inventions! and everything he ever loved surrounding him and making his mind buzz with activity. Depressed because he could only watch on as others developed, discovered, and tinkered with the makings of the universe while he would never be able to do so, not without a degree. But he couldn’t afford one, could barely afford to feed himself and keep an apartment and pay utilities while saving up for said degree.

He was rarely happy nowadays. From early morning til night it was work work work. First with janitorial duties at some fancy law firm in the early mornings, then his day job from 9 to 5 as a ‘salesperson’ but all he ever does is cold calls until his ass is numb from sitting, then the occasional coffee fetching, then another janitorial job at another fancy business firm.

Everyday he regrets, blames himself, because it was his own fault that he didn’t get the full ride scholarship at the end of high school. But it was just, Aunt May and Uncle Ben had died and he’d slipped up and lost his 4.0 and any hopes he had of a future. They left him a will but they never had much to begin with either, and he couldn’t hope to patch up whatever he owed working and studying at the same time.

So he’d made the decision to work himself to the bone for that degree. He needed it. Nobody would even think to hire someone in engineering without a degree. And he wouldn’t settle for any less than working in his dream industry, he owed it to Aunt May and Uncle Ben for financing him through science school, he couldn’t let them down.

If he was being honest Stark Expo was probably the only thing that kept him going. And online science communities too but they weren’t physical like Stark Expo was. Here it was bright, sparking, filled with people, science, and people who love science. Watching someone give a presentation about one invention or another was always interesting, sometimes Peter thinks it’s the only simulation his brain gets anymore.

So yes, he comes to Stark Expo to surround himself with lights and people and clear his mind of life and just immerse himself in science. But today was different, don’t get him wrong Peter was still just as excited about the science but it was drowned out by the utter defeat he felt.

His apartment had been quiet and he had sat in the dark hugging his knees to himself, overthinking, about the people that he’s lost, the things, the opportunities, the time, the life that he’s lost. His mind had been stuck with what ifs and it had been spinning scenario after scenario of how his life could have been better, he could be studying in MIT with a full ride scholarship, making friends, joining clubs and being social, not cleaning up people’s spilled coffee and calling up strangers to get shouted at.

He had cried but it wasn’t enough, nothing was enough. His heart was thudding loud in his chest and his head hurt, the long red welts on his arms stung from where he’d scratched them hoping it’d distract him from his mind, it didn’t work. When he began entertaining thoughts of ‘what was the point?’ he knew he couldn’t stay in that tiny silent apartment anymore. And so he left.

Walking around Stark Expo at night with red rimmed eyes, tear stained cheeks, and a stuffy crying nose was not one of his proudest moments. He’s dressed in a dark hoodie that he pulls around his body like armour and jeans, slippers flip flopping against the packed soil floor. The people are too preoccupied by the displays and interactive models to pay him much attention. He keeps his head down anyways, he has a destination in mind.

Once he gets to the more secluded less bright section of the expo he breathes a sigh of relief. He came out so he wouldn’t be alone but the main expo was just too much for his mindset right now, he needed low murmurs and dim lights.

He manoeuvres past the interactive models, poking some as he goes, heading towards the screens where they play speeches and presentations over and over again, changed every so often. There are screens that are more secluded, in small buildings shaped like 3 dimensional pentagons with LED at the edges lighting them up, meant to give surround sound experience. He enters one of them after checking if it was empty to the best of his abilities, it was dark but he assumes if anyone was in there they’d sit right up front and centre but the seat’s empty so he takes it.

The screen is playing one of Tony Stark’s presentations. Peter listens half-heartedly. It’s not that he doesn’t like it, in fact Tony Stark is practically his idol, but his mind is just too shrouded by dangerous thoughts for him to feel any more than just slight desire. He hopes he can get out of this funk before closing time.

He pulls the sleeves of his hoodie down to cover his hands, folds his knees up onto the long couch and resumes the position he had at home. The fact that he wasn’t at home near anything that allowed him to entertain stupid thoughts is enough to put him slightly more at ease, the sound of footsteps and people’s chatter outside helps too.

He sniffles as he feels the tears beginning to burn against the back of his eyes again, then he laughs, broken wet sobbing laughs, not loud but depreciating and painful. Here he was, sitting in a building at a corner of Stark Expo, using Tony Stark’s voice as background noise to ground and comfort himself. A thousand and million self-pitying thoughts running through his mind, and nothing he could do about it. He was so pathetic.

“You’re an idiot Peter Parker.” He berates himself between sobs. “So what if you’re smart huh, you’re just a fucking idiot.”

His fault.

His fault that Aunt May and Uncle Ben went down to the store instead of him, all because he was too wrapped up in his stupid homework to get some stupid eggs.

“Aced chemistry but so what? It’s all your fault.”

His fault that his elderly Aunt and Uncle got caught in a supermarket stick up.

“It’s all your fault.”

His fault that they got shot.

“You made them go.”

His fault that they died.

“Your fault that they died Peter Parker.”

His tears are falling now, he’s wiping and wiping his eyes raw.

“Your fault that you lost the scholarship.”

His heart is thudding so loud in his chest combined with him talking to himself drowns out the surround sound of Tony Stark’s voice.

“And now you can’t even honour their memory by going to university.”

He sighs, breathing out the frustration.

“What’s wrong with you Peter Parker?”

“Yes what _is_ wrong with you Peter Parker?”

Peter jumps and nearly screams. He whirls around and in the process loses his balance and falls sideways off the couch. When he finally scrambles up he squints at the area behind the couch, he could have sworn this place was empty. But now that his eyes have adjusted to the dark he can see that he’s wrong. There’s a man sitting at the corner couches, he’s not looking at Peter but scrolling through his phone.

Peter flushes at the thought that someone had heard him talk to himself, god he just can’t do anything right can he? He can’t even pity himself without making a scene.

“I-I’m sorry man, sorry you had to hear that. I-I’ll just leave.” Peter stutters out before heading for the exit.

“Peter Benjamin Parker, aged 21, orphan, Midtown science school graduate. Your proposal for synthetic cables are promising, but you never finished them. So I repeat, what _is_ your problem Peter Parker?” The man raises his head once he finishes talking and Peter needs to look twice to make sure he isn’t hallucinating from stress or something.

Peter probably took too long staring at the man’s face because he makes a tsking noise, “I don’t like to be kept waiting Peter Parker.”

Peter snaps out of his staring and chokes on his own words trying to answer The Tony Stark, “I-I… it just… I didn’t… finish it.” Then he hastily tacks on, “B-before I graduated.” Because Peter regrets that the most, not having access to labs anymore to finish his invention.

Stark makes a humming noise before continuing, “And?”

Peter looks quizzically at him, what else was there to say? “I-I would like to finish it, but- but I don’t have access to a lab…” He shoves his hands into his jeans pockets and scuffs his foot against the carpeted floor. The silence stretches and Peter flushes as the fact that his childhood idol sat through his self-pitying monologue finally sinks in. God he’s an idiot.

Peter feels Tony Stark stare at him some more before the man finally speaks again, “Interesting. I’ll lend you my labs, you’ll finish the cables and if I’m satisfied, I’ll reward you.”

Peter’s head snaps up so quick he hears it crack but that isn’t important, what’s important was what Tony Stark, genius of his generation, just said. “Mr.Stark?”

Mr.Stark stands and walks towards where Peter is at the exit, “A full ride scholarship to a university of your choice perhaps?”

Peter can only stare gobsmacked, Mr. Stark laughs and pats Peter on the shoulder, “I’ll send a car for you next Sunday 8am, don’t keep me waiting.”

With that said the man leaves and Peter is honestly too shocked to do much else but stare after the man.

A full ride scholarship. To a university of his choice.

Peter is dreaming for sure. He pinches himself and ow okay no he’s not.

But. That was Tony Stark. And he was impressed by Peter’s high school proposal for a cable that, alright, had proposed tensile strength that was off the charts, but still, it was only a proposal.

But still. Tony Stark had given him access to his labs to finish his proposal. This could open so many doors for Peter he could literally cry. He was crying.

He belatedly shouts a “Thank you Mr.Stark I won’t let you down!” after the man but he’s pretty sure Mr.Stark doesn’t hear him but whatever.

Peter was reeling. Finally. A chance. He could live. If he did this right he could turn his whole life around.

He could do this. He will do this right. He has to. Even if he has to sell his soul to do it, he will. He must.


End file.
